Thursday 20
GETTING RELEASED. "If blues is played right," says W.C. Clark, "it makes your soul feel clean."
You can clean up with some top-notch blues this weekend as the Austin, Texas rocker celebrates the release of a new album.
Known as "The Godfather of Austin Blues," Clark has been playing the blues on stages around the world for more than 40 years. And he's been mentoring countless young blues and soul players for almost as long.
He's helped such stars as Stevie Ray and Jimmie Vaughan perfect their craft. Clark's mix of modern Texas blues, searing guitar and heartfelt, Memphis-style soul vocals have made him a favorite of blues and R&B fans alike.
Clark was born into a music family in 1939. His father played guitar and his grandmother, mother and sisters all sang gospel in the church choir.
"I had so much music in my soul, all I had to do was pick up an instrument and play it," Clark says.
A Tucson show, presented by Terry O' Productions, starts at 9 tonight at Nimbus Brewing and Tap Room, 3850 E. 44th St. (Go south on the Palo Verde Overpass, take your first left on to 44th Street and follow the signs.) Tickets are $10. For more information, call 745-9175 or visit www.wcclark.com.
BUENOS NOCHES. Need to get away for a couple of hours? A fairy tale-opera for adults opening tonight has all the ingredients for a great escape.
Set in Sweden at the turn of the 20th century, Steven Sondheim's A Little Night Music is a stylish celebration of romantic love. The show revolves around leisure-class people whose most pressing problems revolve around their past, present and future affairs of the heart.
Featuring outstanding singers from the UA School of Music and Dance and the School of Theatre Arts, the musical will be staged and directed by Nando Schellen, director of opera theatre at Northern Arizona University.
Schellen, a native of the Netherlands, is highly regarded as an expert on German Opera. He served as a director of the Netherlands Opera, Amsterdam, for 18 years, and held posts with the Sweelinck Conservatory of Music, the Bayreuth Wagner Festival and regional theaters.
Gregg I. Hanson, UA director of bands, will serve as musical director. Hanson heads an innovative graduate conducting program at the UA, where he serves as director of wind bands and is a professor of conducting. His performing ensembles have appeared at major venues in the United States.
UA Opera Theatre's production, part of Summer Arts 2002 program, starts at 7:30 p.m. tonight, Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. All performances are at Crowder Hall in the UA Music Building at the south end of the pedestrian underpass on Speedway Boulevard east of Park Avenue. Tickets are $12 general; $10 UA employees and seniors; and $8 students. Tickets are available through the UA Fine Arts Box Office at 621-1162. For more information, please 621-2998 or visit www.arts.arizona.edu/music.
Friday 21
TAKING UP RESIDENCY. Rebecca Davidson's poetry really stands out in a crowd.
A panel of judges for the Poetry Center's Summer Residency Program chose Davidson's manuscript of poems from over 230 anonymous entries.
Davidson is a master of fine arts candidate in poetry at Colorado State University. She is an apprentice poet for poet Mary Crow's Literacy Through Poetry project, which works with grade school children in Fort Collins to promote literacy and enthusiasm for poetry.
Davidson has also studied at Naropa University and George Mason University, where she received the Outstanding English Major Award in 1999.
As the winner of the Summer Residency Contest, Davidson will receive a $500 stipend, a quiet place to write for one month, and access to the extensive special collection of books, periodicals, audio-visual recordings, photographs and broadsides at the Poetry Center.
Davidson will present a free reading tonight at 7 at Antigone Bookstore, 411 North Fourth Ave. For more information, call 626-3765 or visit www.coh.arizona.edu/poetry.
Saturday 22
JOIN THE ARMY. G.I.'s at Fort Huachuca are getting ready to rock and you're welcomed to join them.
The annual Miller Genuine Draft Army Concert Tour comes in for a landing at Libby Army Airfield. Classic rockers Styx, with pop stars Evan and Jaron and the alternative rock group Dishwalla, headline this year's concert.
Fort Huachuca was one of 10 locations chosen to host this year's Miller Genuine Draft Army Concert Tour. A summer concert is an annual outdoor event on Libby Army Airfield.
Gates for the concert open up a 6:30 p.m. and the concert begins at 8 p.m., but a pre-party for advance ticket holders kicks off just outside the gates this year at 3 p.m. Food and beverages and a live radio remote provide a fun warm up for this summer's hottest event.
Because the concert is an outdoor event with no reserved seating, ticket holders can bring in their own seating or blankets.
Fort Huachuca's East Gate at the intersection of Highway 90 and the Highway 92 bypass will bring drivers right to the concert. Access to the concert will be controlled, but well marked. Ticket holders from Tucson should take I-10 East to Exit 302 and follow Highway 90.
Tickets are available on Fort Huachuca at the MWR Box Office. In Tucson, tickets are available at the Safeway stores on Broadway and Campbell and Broadway and Camino Seco. Advance tickets are $20. Tickets will be sold at the concert for $30. For more information, call 533-2404 or 888-921-4745 or visit www.mwrhuachuca.com.
THREE'S A CHARM. For a third and most unique season, the raw and talented dancers of Nebellen are back in action.
This time Nebellen has teamed up with Anya, Phoenix's Afro-Cuban, Afro-Brazilian dance company.
Nebellen's innovative styles of movement straight from the underground dance scene make audience members want to get up and dance.
Tonight's event will be a first opportunity to watch Nebellen and Anya perform the Third Nebellen show. Adding the musical richness of Emilio Caruso's drum group, Anya, should give the performance loads of musical energy.
Nebellen Dance Company, a non-profit organization, has been invited by the Minister of Culture in China to perform in Beijing, Nanjing and Shanghai this August. The Chinese government will be paying half of the expenses. Nebellen is responsible for the other half, which totals approximately $30,000. By coming to see Nebellen at the Drum Dance Jam you will be contributing straight to the fund for the Chinese tour.
The show starts at 7:30 tonight at Pima Community College, 2202 W. Anklam Road. Tickets are $12. Tickets are available at the box office, which is open 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, or at the door.
GET IN A CIRCLE. Want to find out what it feels like to create the thunderous sound of taiko?
Want to know what taiko is? In a nutshell, taiko is the artistic, powerful and physically demanding discipline of ensemble drumming.
If you're still interested, think about enrolling for basic taiko drumming workshops, which start today and runs Saturdays through July 20.
Taiko, which refers to both the modern art of taiko drumming (kumi-daiko) and to the drums themselves, has a history spanning close to 2,000 years. Modern taiko drumming has a history of only 50 years, but it is quickly taking the world by storm through exhilarating performances by groups such as Kodo and Yamato.
Sponsored by Odaiko Sonora, Tucson's Taiko-za, the workshops will be taught by Esther Vandecar of Fushicho Daiko. Vandecar holds awards and teaching certificates (menjo) from several taiko organizations in Japan.
No experience is necessary for the five-week series of workshops, which cost $125. The cost includes all materials. The classes take place at the Zuzi! Little Theater in the Historic Y, 738 N. Fifth Ave. For more information, or to sign up, call 481-8003 or visit www.geocities.com/odaikosonora. (Click on the "Learn to play taiko" link in the sidebar.)
Sunday 23
AND THEY'RE OFF ... A performance by Wanda Brister, lyric mezzo-soprano, and pianist Margaret Perry launches a the St. Andrew's Bach Society's 2002 Summer Concert Series.
Brister and Perry will present a program of music by Handel, Mozart, Strauss, Debussy, Nino Rota and Madeleine Dring.
Brister is an assistant professor of music at the University of Arizona. She has performed in operas and concert halls all over the world, including Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center, with conductors such as Michael Tilson Thomas and Philippe Entremont.
Perry is a doctoral candidate in piano performance at the UA, where she studies with Dr. Rex Woods. She has performed in the Amalfi Coast Music Festival in Vietri sul Mare, Italy and the Corsi Internazionali di Musica in Urbino, Italy, and is continuing her research on 20th-century Italian piano music. She has twice received the Medici Scholars Award.
Today's concert begins at 3 p.m. at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, 545 S. Fifth Ave. Tickets are $8 general admission and $7 for seniors and students and will be available at the door. For more information, call 628-8119 or e-mail christina@delegation.org.
Monday 24
RAIN DANCE. If you've caught yourself singing The Tempations' "I'd Wish It Would Rain," there's a celebration today you might enjoy.
Tucson's fifth annual Día de San Juan Fiesta celebrates the beginning of the monsoon season with a traditional blessing and procession, games and entertainment. This free event takes place from 4 to 9 p.m. at West Congress Street at the Santa Cruz River. The traditional procession from Mission Lane to the Santa Cruz begins at 5 p.m., followed by a blessing of the altar. Charros on horseback will perform at 6 p.m. with children's games and activities also on hand. For more information, call 791-4040.
Tuesday 25
CHEAP, CHEAP. Take the family out for an entertaining evening that doesn't come with a big price tag.
Family Nights at Bentley's features a kid's open mic. Children can share a song, a magic trick or poetry during the show and tell session hosted by Bruce Phillips.
The kids have a choice of spaghetti, macaroni and cheese or chicken strips and potatoes, served with a small shake or juice and a cookie for just $2.50.
The event is from 6 to 9 p.m. every Tuesday at Bentley's House of Coffee and Tea, 1730 E. Speedway. For more information, call 795-0338.
Wednesday 26
HEAVY PETTING. Want something warm and cuddly? How about a critter that will love you unconditionally? Why stop at just one?
Cats are on sale this month during the Humane Society's Adopt-a-Shelter Cat Month.
Through the end of the month, you can get a 2-for-1 adoptions on cats or kittens, or half price on cats 1 year old or older.
The deal includes spay or neuter, first shots, carrier, care kit, half price on ID microchip, $5 vaccinations and "soft paws" claw covers.
For more information, call 327-6088.
